With soaring temperatures in the forecast, risks rise from California’s Sherpa Fire, and other blazes across the West

From a trail near my house along Colorado’s Front Range, the majestic Rockies ordinarily stand out in clear relief against blue Western skies. But when I set out on a run this morning, those skies were gauzy, and the mountains were barely visible.

The cause: smoke blowing in from wildfires burning to the west.

With temperatures beginning to soar under a growing dome of high pressure, firefighters are struggling to contain major wildfires in California, Arizona, New Mexico and other wes